Monthly Archives: May 2016

. . . While jurors were being picked, prosecutors had highlighted the names of African Americans, circled the word “black” on questionnaires, and added notations such as “B#1” and “B#2.” On a sheet labeled “definite NO’s,” they put the last five blacks in the jury pool on top. And they ranked them in case “it comes down to having to pick one of the black jurors.”

. . . [B]ecause Foster received a death sentence, it could bolster arguments voiced last year by Justices Stephen Breyer and Ruth Bader Ginsburg that the death penalty itself may be unconstitutional. Read the article: USA Today

. . . “Pfizer makes its products to enhance and save the lives of the patients we serve,” the pharmaceutical giant’s updated policy said. “Consistent with these values, Pfizer strongly objects to the use of its products as lethal injections for capital punishment. . . . Pfizer will consistently monitor the distribution of these 7 products, act upon findings that reveal noncompliance, and modify policies when necessary to remain consistent with our stated position against the improper use of our products in lethal injections.” Read the article at The Atlantic

The pharmaceutical giant Pfizer announced on Friday that it has imposed sweeping controls on the distribution of its products to ensure that none are used in lethal injections, a step that closes off the last remaining open-market source of drugs used in executions. Continue reading: New York Times

It was no surprise last month when a Louisiana appeals court affirmed a trial judge’s denial of compensation for the estate of the late Glenn Ford. Ford was the soft-spoken black man who spent 30 years on death row for a murder he did not commit, convicted by an all-white jury following a trial in which he was represented by an oil and gas attorney who had never before tried a case. Continue reading: The Marshall Project

“. . . Thuesen, a 25-year-old former Marine reservist, called 911 and almost immediately expressed remorse. When he was arrested, he repeatedly asked the police about the victims and tried to explain why he’d kept shooting Rachel and her brother: “I felt like I was in like a mode … like training or a game or something.” Read the article: Mother Jones